Head-butt MP Eric Joyce quits Labour party and apologises to victims

Eric Joyce has resigned as a member of the Labour party and apologised to parliamentary colleagues he attacked in a House of Commons bar last month.

Eric Joyce announced his resignation from the Labour party to the House of Commons (Picture: PA)

The 51-year-old, MP for Falkirk since 2000, told the Commons he had ‘a number of personal issues to address’, saying his behaviour in Strangers Bar on February 22 had ‘fallen egregiously below what is required’ of an MP.

Joyce, a former Major in the British army, pleaded guilty to four counts of assault, including assault by beating, but avoided a custodial sentence as Westminster Magistrates Court ordered him to pay a fine and compensation to his victims, as well as banning him from pubs for three months.

Eric Joyce was suspended by the Labour party after his initial arrest (Picture: PA)